


Critically Enrolled

by Elri



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Fluff, Hijinks & Shenanigans, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-21
Updated: 2019-04-29
Packaged: 2019-05-09 15:56:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 28
Words: 19,747
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14719130
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elri/pseuds/Elri
Summary: A series of scenes with some semblance of a plot that follows the Might Nein through their shared college experiences





	1. Beau & Fjord

**Author's Note:**

> Tumblr user i-do-as-i-want made [ this post ](http://i-do-as-i-want.tumblr.com/post/173788188469/college-au-with-fjord-and-baeu-baeu-soo-uhhh-we) and it sent my creativity running wild. The first few chapters are going to be various first encounters amongst the group, what will follow are whatever scenes I come up with inspired either by events in the campaign or * hint hint* reader prompts which can be submitted to me via the comments or my tumblr: [ elrireedyr.tumblr.com ](https://elrireedyr.tumblr.com/)

Beau was on her way to pick up the booze from her ‘dealer’ (aka an upperclassman she bribed into buying alcohol for her) when she saw some poor sucker sitting in the hall, slumped against the wall in a familiar way. She recognized him, not because he was in her biology class because she didn’t know who half the people were and didn’t care about the rest, but because Jester had told her all about him. His name was Fjord, a freshman with an undeclared minor. He was in one of the beginner art classes with Jester and had quickly endeared himself to her.

“He’s not a great artist,” Jester had told Beau one night, lying on her bed doodling in her sketchbook, “But he actually tries you know? Some people are just doing as little as possible so they can pass and leave but he really cares about doing well. He still needs some practice, but I like his drawings,” She’d grinned to herself as she picked up a colored pencil to add some shading, “He seems to like the ocean a lot, I wonder if he’s a sailor! Texas has beaches right? He could totally be a sailor.”

“Uh-huh,” Was all Beau had offered. She couldn’t help but hear but she tuned out a lot of what Jester said. Jester didn’t mind, if it was really important she would make sure she had Beau’s full attention. 

It was pretty obvious that Jester had a crush on him, and from the way Beau had seen Fjord looking at Jester from across the dining hall, he liked her back. Neither had made a move though, maybe now was a chance to give them a nudge. She smirked, walking up and poking Fjord’s leg with her foot.

He jumped a little and looked up, pulling his legs in, “Sorry, was I blockin’ the hall?” 

“Nah, you’re good; you’re Fjord, right?”

“Uh yeah, Beauregard right?”

“Beau.”

“Nice to meet ya’ Beau,” He held up a hand and she shook it.

“So, you sexiled?”

“You could…say that.” At that moment, a series of giggles could be heard behind the door he was sitting next to.

“Are there…are there three people in there?” She wasn’t sure if she was impressed or more sorry for Fjord now.

“My roommate brought over some…friends.”

“Who’s your roommate?”

“Mollymauk Tealeaf.”

Beau grinned, “You’re a freshman, aren’t you?”

“Yeah, how’d you know?”

“All the upperclassmen are too smart to get stuck with Mollymauk for a roommate. So, I gotta ask, what is Molly? Guy? Girl? Both? Neither?”

Fjord shrugged, “He doesn’t really care about gender and all that, I just say he because it’s easier when I’m talkin’ to the folks back home.”

“Yeah, I get that. Well I’m about to get some shitty beer then go watch shitty movies with my roommate, wanna come?”

It looked like he was about to decline when an audible moan made its way into the hall, “Yes."


	2. Jester & Fjord

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> How their paths first met

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This picks up at the end of the previous chapter

Jester looked up to ask Beau what took her so long but stopped on the first syllable when she saw the person walking in behind her.

“Hey Jes, sorry about the wait. I picked up a straggler though; you know Fjord, right?”

Beau only called her Jes when she was deliberately being obnoxious. Of course Jester knew Fjord, she’d only been admiring him since the beginning of the semester.

* * *

 

Jester had been the first one in the room, eager to catch up with her favorite professor, who had been posting regularly about his travels over the summer. He’d been to all kinds of beautiful places and Jester had been dying to talk to him about some kind of mural using images from the trip. She’d also wanted to show off her new bright blue hair. While they were talking, other students had trickled in, some from previous classes but not all. A few had a look Jester was all too familiar with: ugh why do I have to do this I’m not even an art major. They were probably going to be difficult to deal with, but she would muster through.

It was right when the professor was about to start class that someone…different rushed into class. He was tall, a little scruffy, and somewhat lean though there were hints of muscle tone. He was also panting and flushed, apparently fresh from a run. There was a slip of paper in his hand that he held out to the professor, trying to speak before giving up and just bending over with his hands on his knees.

The professor took the slip and looked over it and the student, the faintest smile on his lips, “Ah, our last minute addition. Welcome, Fjord? Is it?”

“Yeah, Fjord Siemin. Sorry I’m late.” His southern drawl came through a bit slurred as he caught his breath.

“Not at all, you’re right on time. Please, have a seat next to Jester.”

Fjord turned and Jester waved, giving him a friendly grin. He sat down, face still somewhat flushed, and everyone turned their attention back to the professor. Jester kept glancing at him out of the corner of her eye, assessing him. He seemed attentive enough, and he was pretty handsome too, if she did say so herself (and she did).

When they were all given some free-draw time, she immediately turned to him, folding her hands under her chin, “So, Fjord huh? That’s a cool name.” She smiled as he looked over at her then glanced down. He was shy, it was adorable.

“Jester huh? That’s a pretty cool name yourself.”

“I know, thank you! My mother always says I came out of the womb laughing. What about you, what’s the secret behind your name?” She lowered her voice conspiratorially, leaning in closer.

“It’s uh, it’s kinda a family name. My grandpa always claimed that our ancestors sailed all the way from Norway to Texas, so we’ve always tried to take pride in those roots.”

“So your family were like Vikings!”

“Well,” Fjord leaned in a little, “the way Grandpappy told it, they were on the run, so really they were more like pirates.”

“No way!”

“Of course, there’s no way to be sure, but I feel a bit o’ pirate in me,” Fjord changed over to a pirate accent and winked, making Jester giggle. The professor cleared his throat, gently reminding them to get to work. Jester reluctantly pulled herself back and turned to her sketchbook, but not before catching a glimpse of Fjord’s blush. It was shaping up to be a fun semester.


	3. Beau & Yasha

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> How our disaster lesbian fell for our barbarian angel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Picks up back in Beau and Jester's room before diverging into a flashback again

“So Beau, how do you know Fjord?” Jester tried not to sound too accusing. She knew Beau wasn’t so tactless as to walk right up to him and say ‘Hey my roommate is practically in love with you and keeps staring at you across the dining hall, wanna come hang out in our room?’

“We’re both taking that stupid bio class,” Beau told her, passing over one of the beers and pulling out Jester’s desk chair for Fjord before straddling the back of her own, resting her elbows on the backrest.

“The material isn’t so bad,” Fjord added, “It’s just the professor that’s driving me crazy. I swear we spend more time on pointless tangents than actually learning.”

“I know!” Beau leaned forward, rocking the chair back, “I could probably test better on her stupid cats than any shit about cells.”

“Hey,” Fjord leaned forward, grinning a little, “What did the cell say when his sister stepped on his foot?”

Beau narrowed her eyes suspiciously, “What?”

“Ow! My toe, sis!”

Beau groaned and Jester started giggling, “That was pretty good, Fjord.”

“If those are the jokes you make when you’re sober,” Beau said, “I don’t think I want to hear your drunk ones.”

“So you two have biology together,” Jester said, gesturing between them, “And Beau, don’t you also have chemistry with Yasha?”

“Shut up, Jester,” Beau groaned, dropping her head onto her arms.

“Yasha? Ain’t that the tall chick that’s usually hangin’ around Molly?”

“You know Molly too!?” Jester clapped her hands together, “I have theater class with him, it’s so fun!”

“I think everyone knows Molly, but yeah he’s my roommate.”

“He’s also the reason you’re here,” Beau smirked, tipping back her beer. “Fjord here got sexiled by Molly’s threesome.”

Jester leaned forward eagerly, “Who else was there?”

“I didn’t really get a good look at ‘em,” Fjord admitted, “I just kinda grabbed an apple and wished them Godspeed.”

Beau frowned, “You guys have apples in your room?”

“Molly was usin’ ‘em for a still-life or somethin’ so now we have a bunch of fruit sittin’ in the room.”

“So,” Jester said, trying to get back to their previous topic, “Do you know Yasha then?”

“She stops by the room every now ‘n then when she and Molly are off to do somethin’ but we haven’t really hung out; why do you ask?”

“Beau has a really big crush on her,” Jester staged whispered delightedly.

“Jester! Dude! Not cool!”

“It’s true Beau! You know, I really think you should ask her out.”

“Do you really want to be talking about crushes right now, Jester?” Beau asked, a warning but also a plea to stop.

Jester immediately backed off, “Sorry Beau.”

“It’s alright.” Beau sighed, rolling the beer can in her hands, “I don’t even know if she’s into women, and I really don’t feel like being labelled a ‘predatory lesbian’ again.”

“Did someone here say that?” There was innocence in Jester’s voice but murder in her eyes.

“Nah, just some shit I had to deal with at home.”

“Folks not that acceptin’ of certain things?” Fjord asked, glad they were past the awkwardness of the crush discussion.

“Yeah, something like that.”

“I hear that.”

“What’s your red letter?” Beau asked. “I mean, you don’t have to tell us if you don’t want to I’m just trying to engage in the conversation.”

“Naw it’s alright. I’m bisexual, not exactly a well-known or well-liked concept in a lot of places. I’ve made my peace with it though, no use dwellin’ on that kinda thing.”

“I’ll drink to that,” Beau held out her can and clinked with Fjord before downing half of it in one go. As Fjord and Jester started talking about art or something, she let her thoughts wander to Yasha.

* * *

 

It had been fate, in a way, meeting Yasha. Beau was assigned to work the desk at the fitness center on campus as a way of teaching her responsibility and keeping her out of trouble or some shit like that. She didn’t mind too much, the douchebags had learned not to mess with her and she got to go right from work to training. Dairon, one of the coaches, was teaching Beau during the off hours as another incentive for her to take the desk job a little more seriously.

The day she met Yasha, she hadn’t been scheduled to work but Bryce, one of the colleagues she didn’t hate, had had some kind of emergency or whatever and promised her a favor, so she begrudgingly took their shift. It had been a really slow shift since most people were in class or at lunch so Beau had been trying to balance a pencil across her nose. She’d just about gotten in when a gentle voice startled her to attention.

“Uhm, excuse me? I think I need to sign in?”

The woman on the other side of the desk was so Beau’s type it hurt. Tall, obviously strong, and with a hint of ‘don’t fuck with me’ in her stance.

“Uh right, yeah, sign in,” Beau scrambled for the clipboard, “Are you a student here?”

“I am,” She held out her ID.

“Right, cool, thanks,” Beau copied down the information and held the clipboard out, putting the ID at the top, “just sign there. Y’know, Yasha’s a pretty cool name,” she said as Yasha took the board and her ID.

“Thank you,” Yasha nodded and glanced down, “Do you have a pen I could borrow?”

“A pen, yeah totally, sorry,” Beau grabbed the nearest one she could find, mentally kicking herself for looking like a total dumbass. All those thoughts came to a screeching halt when Yasha’s fingers brushed hers as she took the pen. She had calluses, but her skin was still so soft.

Yasha glanced up at her and for a terrified moment Beau thought she might have said that out loud but Yasha just signed her name and passed back the clipboard and pen, “Thank you…Beau?”

“Huh?” Beau glanced down at her name tag, “Oh, yeah. My full name’s Beauregard but I kinda hate it so I put tape over the last part.”

“It’s nice to meet you then, Beau. Have a nice day.” Yasha nodded, and picked up her gym bag, heading towards the punching bag room.

“Yeah thanks you too!” A few people turned at Beau’s slightly-too-loud response but she glared and sent them back to minding their business. Once no one was looking she dropped her head on the desk with a quiet groan. She was so fucked.


	4. Caleb & Beau

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Socially Inept Duo form an unexpected alliance

“Hey.”

It’s a sharp voice, feminine but gruff, and one that Caleb recognized from the mandatory biology class he’d put off till this semester. Looking up confirmed the identity of the speaker: Beauregard. She looked pissed off but from what he can tell from the other side of the back row of the lecture hall, she has two moods and that’s one of them. 

“Can I help you?”

“You’re smart, right?” Somehow she still managed to sound aggressive as she asked it, like she’s accusing him of something.

“Why?” He stared at her eyebrow, trying to fake eye contact with her almost getting in his face.

She slammed a book down on the desk, The Psychologists’ Handbook, he knew it all too well. “Can you explain this shit to me without talking to me like I’m 5?”

That’s when Caleb realized she’s not mad at him, she’s just mad and he’s there. “You have Ikithon, don’t you?”

“Yeah,” She bit the word out, grinding her teeth.

“He’s an arschloch and he’s full of shit, but he’s only aware of one of those things and he doesn’t care. If you want to pass, you have to play by his rules.” Caleb picked up the book and thumbed the edges of the pages, “I will try to explain this, but I’m not very good at talking to people.”

“Neither am I.”

“Well as long as you don’t punch me in the face I think we might be able to work together.”

“I only punched a guy one time and it’s because he was being a total tool,” Beau’s defensive anger dissipates as she realizes Caleb is smiling just a little. He’s fucking with her. “You’re gonna make it really hard for me not to punch you.”

“Ja, probably.”


	5. Molly

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> How Jester, Fjord, and Caleb each met Molly

Everyone knew who Mollymauk Tealeaf was. Even people who had never spoken to him before knew who he was. He didn’t exactly try to blend in. His hair was a shock of purple flitting across campus, seemingly everywhere at once. He was always sitting with a group of people in the dining hall, and hardly ever the same people twice. The only constant companion he ever had was Yasha; when she wasn’t studying abroad or off campus she was usually somewhere in his proximity. If you asked anyone what year he was or what his major was, they could give you an approximate guess but there were no certain answers.

Molly and Jester met in the Improv Club and were instantly drawn to each other’s brightly colored hair. Some say they felt the winds of change ripple across the campus that day. The two instantly fell into what was later dubbed a “Bullshit Feedback Loop,” just riffing back and forth with increasingly ridiculous stories about their lives, claiming things likes crawling out of their own graves or allegiance to trickster gods. Things got really out of hand when Molly produced a deck of tarot cards (because of course he just had tarot cards on him) and started doing some complex reading for Jester. The professor for the class arrived in the middle of it but just stood back and watched the madness unfold.

Between Jester’s excessively friendly demeanor and Molly’s near-total disregard for social conventions, they were a force to be reckoned with when on the move together. Her flowing dresses and his…colorful coat ensured that everyone could see them coming from a mile away, but even if they ran they were not necessarily safe. Thankfully for everyone else, Jester usually had club obligations or art to work on, so she wasn’t with Molly too often.

* * *

 

Fjord honestly hadn’t been sure what to expect when he found out he was rooming with an upperclassman. He’d been somewhat of a last-minute addition, barely getting from the waitlist to the acceptance list before the start of the semester, so he’d probably just been stuck with a random person who still didn’t have a roommate. It hadn’t concerned him as much as it probably should have that there was a room vacancy this close to the school year but he’d been too busy making sure he’d packed everything and was enrolled in classes.

When he’d checked-in to get his key, the first inkling that he might be in trouble was the slight wince he swears he saw when the Res Advisor looked at his room assignment. The second inkling was really less of an inkling and more of a flashing neon WARNING sign, and it came in the form of a giant dragon tapestry that covered almost the entirety of one of the walls.

“Uhhh.” Fjord looked around, there didn’t seem to be any sign of his roommate even though the door had been open, “Hello?”

“Hi there,” An arm came down around his neck, “Are you the roommate then?”

“Uh, yeah, I’m Fjord, Fjord Siemin.”

“Mollymauk Tealeaf, Molly to my friends, pleasure to meet ya,” The lopsided grin matched the slightly mischievous tone behind the lilting accent. “Can I help with your bags or anything?”

“There’s my duffel and my backpack, that’s about it."

“Is this all you have?” Molly hauled up the duffel bag and followed Fjord into the room, “We need to take you shopping or something.”

“That’s alright, I packed all the necessities.”

“Yes but this is a whole new adventure! A brand new chapter in your life! This is the time to stretch the boundaries of your world and go for something just for the hell of it. You’re still alive Fjord, _live_ a little.” With that, Molly strode out of the room, off to do who-knows-what, leaving Fjord to wonder what the hell he’d just gotten himself into.

* * *

 

“Excuse me,” a pair of tattooed hands rested on the desk as the brightly-haired speaker leaned forward, “Could you tell me if the library has _House of Holes_ by Nicholson Baker?" 

“Do you have a call number?” Caleb put down the book he’d been reading and turned towards the computer.

“I’m afraid not. Well, _I_ do but not for the book,” They grinned, watching Caleb for any kind of reaction. “Mollymauk Tealeaf, Molly to my friends.”

“Caleb. Widogast.” He responded absently, “We do not have that particular book but we can order it from another library for you, and there are a number of other smutty books upstairs on this shelf if you would like to take a look at those,” Caleb scribbled down the numbers on a piece of paper and held it out, looking at the person’s nose.

“You don’t say,” Mollymauk took the paper and glanced down at it before looking back up at Caleb, “You seemed to find your way around those pretty easily.”

“You are hardly the first person to come in here asking for smut or something else of that nature in an attempt to humiliate me. I don’t know if you’re trying to settle a bet or something but do me a favor: either settle it or lose graciously, stop wasting my time.”

“I can see why that would be annoying, but I assure you my intentions were purely out of curiosity. A friend of mine picked up an interesting read here the other day and I just _had_ to come look for myself. Tell you what, I’m going to go upstairs and peruse the selection and would you do me a huge favor and put in the order for _House of Holes_? I’ve been dying to finish that thing for ages and I’m not going to pass up an opportunity when I have one.”

“May I see your student ID?”

“Here,” Mollymauk handed over his card, “you hang onto that and I’ll be down in a flash.” He whirled and sauntered off to the staircase, apparently serious about his mission.

Caleb sighed, mentally reminding himself how many days to graduation there were before resigning himself to the task of ordering _House of Holes_. When Mollymauk returned with a handful of books Caleb scanned them out and passed the stack back with the ID card on top.

“Excellent, how long do I have these for?”

“Three weeks. You will receive an email when the due date is coming up.”

“Do I get to come back and see your charming face again when I turn them in?”

Caleb wasn’t sure if Mollymauk was, well, mocking him but decided not to just let it go, “There are return slots on the front of the desk as well as by the front door, so even if it is after hours, or if there is no one at the desk, you should be able to return them without an issue.”

“Well then, I just may have to come back sometime. Until then, Caleb Widogast.” Mollymauk winked, and strolled out the front door. If he had a tail, Caleb was sure it would be wagging.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Beau will meet Molly but not before we start getting into any kind of semi-plot driven stuff. Molly & Yasha's meeting as well as Caleb & Nott's will be told in later flashbacks once the group starts to form, and everyone will be introduced to Nott as we start doing off-campus activities


	6. A Bonding Moment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beau and Caleb have an encounter with a "purple-haired weirdo"

Caleb and Beau were studying in the dining hall. It wasn’t their first choice of locations but Beau was too loud for the library and the usual study areas had enough people to make Caleb nervous about drawing attention. They’d tucked themselves into a back corner booth with Caleb comfortably in the corner of the booth and the wall where the sound was muffled. Beau was straddling her chair in what Fjord had once called the “Riker position” and was rocking back and forth on two of the legs, making sure not to bump into the table.

When someone called Caleb’s name, they looked at each other before turning to see who had spotted him.

“Scheiße,” Caleb cursed under his breath, seeing the person first.

Beau snapped her attention back to Caleb for a second before following his gaze to the waving arm attached to a familiar figure. “Is that Molly?”

“Ja, you know the purple-haired weirdo?”

“Sorta, he’s my friend’s roommate.” Beau turned to look at Caleb, “Has he been bothering you?”

“Yes and no,” Caleb gave a half-shrug, still keeping an eye on Molly, “He likes to come into the library when I’m working and check-out bizarre books, but he doesn’t stay past the transaction.”

“Do you want me to talk to him? Tell him to back off?”

“I don’t think that will be necessary, but I’ll let you know if that changes, thank you, Beau. He’s coming over here, by the way.”

“Well isn’t this a rare sight,” Molly said approaching the table, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you in here, Caleb, let alone out of the library.”

“I don’t come here much.”

“Can’t say I blame you, the food here is shit on a good day.” He grimaced slightly at his plate. “Mind if I join you two?”

“We’re working,” Beau responded, staring him down. 

“So I see, whatcha got there?” He spun one of the books towards him, “Psychology? Ouch, hope you don’t have Ikithon, I’ve heard some creative nicknames for him. And a few less creative ones."

“Look, Molly? Right? I have an exam I need to pass, so either sit down and shut up, or go away.”

“Aren’t you charming,” Molly sat down, rocking back with a casual lean. “Have we met?"

“No, but I know your roommate.”

“Ah, you’re one of Fjord’s friends. Beauregard, isn’t it?”

“Beau.”

“Pleasure. I think I’ve heard about you, people seem to perceive you as somewhat…”

“Tempestuous?”

“Heinous bitch is the term used most often.”

Beau gave Molly a calculating look. “Alright,” She decided, “I don’t already hate you, so you’re off to a good start.”

“Wait,” Caleb looked up from the paper he’d been reading while ignoring them, “What just happened.”

“We’re bonding,” Beau told him.

“He just called you a heinous bitch.”

“It’s a movie quote,” She explained, “And, I mean, it’s also true.”

“To be fair,” Molly said, “You’ve never kicked anyone in the balls. At least, not that I’ve heard.”

“Not yet anyway,” Caleb responded, half to himself.

“Watch it,” Beau warned, “Could be you.”

“Perhaps but I have the security of knowing that you need my help at least through the next semester so I think my balls are safe.”

Beau pretended to glare at Caleb as he gave her a totally unfazed look. They both went back to work and Molly watched the two for a second before digging into his food with a smirk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Movie quoted is 10 Things I Hate About You


	7. Nott & Caleb

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A quiet evening at the apartment at the end of a long week

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A lot of people said they were looking forward to Nott which inspired this chapter (hint hint I do take comment suggestions ;) )
> 
> It's a very simple scene, I was just trying to establish Nott (and Frumpkin) into the world so we have the complete Mighty Nein but she will be showing up more, rest assured

It was finally fucking Friday. Caleb breathed a sigh of relief; no classes, no work, and he’d taken care of his homework during the study session with Beau. Since he didn’t live on campus they’d agreed that they wouldn’t meet on the weekend, which meant he had it all to himself, and he needed it. Many professors were starting to give the first exams of the semester which meant stress levels were up and he’d dealt with more than one poor soul strung out on too much caffeine and not enough sleep. Sighing again, Caleb opened the door to the apartment, not bothering to turn off the lights as he kicked off his shoes, hung up his coat, and shuffled around to flop onto the couch. He felt Frumpkin jump onto his back, knead his shirt into a more comfortable state of rumpled, and curl up into a purring furball.

This was how Nott found him when she got home. With the light from the hall, she could make out his form on the couch, Frumpkin’s eyes glinting as he looked over at her. It seemed that they’d both had pretty rough days. Nott had had to deal with a lot of new people today, which meant a lot of convincing people that she actually knew what she was doing and that she wasn’t twelve she was just short. Even then, there had been a lot of assholes. Hopefully later tonight she would deal with more of her usual people, for now she just needed fuel and a break.

As silently as possible, Nott took her shoes off, hung her bag and jacket on the hooks by the door, and slipped into the apartment. She turned on the flashlight on her phone, covering it with her fingers to dim it as she made her way to the kitchen. The first thing she did was put dry cat food in Frumpkin’s bowl and refill his water, smiling as she saw him padding over to her.

“Mrrow.”

“Hi kitty,” She whispered, scritching him under the chin before letting him eat.

Opening the fridge, Nott was relieved to see some “healthy ramen” left in the fridge, ramen made with half the flavor packet and mixed with some vegetables that Caleb had taken from the dining room at his college. She pulled out the container and hopped up on the counter, not even bothering to heat it up as she put half of it on a plate and ate by the light of her phone. Another search of the fridge revealed leftover cheap beer so she grabbed two bottles and resumed her previous seat, prying open one of the beers,

Caleb wandered into the kitchen shortly after, mumbling what sounded like a greeting as he rubbed the sleep out of his face. Nott silently slid the remaining ramen over to him, opening the other beer as he put the container in the microwave. The unspoken “how was your day” lingered in the air between them, both knowing the answer and neither wanting to say it. Caleb accepted his beer with a nod, leaning on the counter next to Nott while he waited for his food.

“I should be getting paid tonight,” Nott finally said, “If you make a grocery list I can pick some stuff up on my way home.”

“If you wait till the afternoon, I can go with you,” Caleb said, stopping the microwave before it could beep at him, “My hours should have gone through by then and I would like to stop by the book shop. If that’s alright,” He added.

“Of course,” She reassured him.

“Danke.”

“Bitte.”


	8. Lending A Hand

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beau's had a long week, but that doesn't mean she won't help out a certain tall, intimidatingly strong fellow fighter...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More beauyasha was requested and more beauyasha I deliver :)

Beau needed a break. She’d been studying almost non-stop for Ikithon’s fucking exam all week, to the point where she wasn’t sure if she was going to pass any other tests her professors gave her but she’d be damned if she didn’t pass that fucking psych exam. It didn’t help that some asshole had skipped work and she was the only one available to cover the shift. She’d been trying to be civil to people, she really had, but everyone was stressed out which meant a lot of people were acting stupid. In order to distract herself she’d been putting her frustration into studying, determined to pass if only out if spite, but it hadn’t done much. Thankfully, it was the end of her shift, and the standing punching bags were free.

She was in the middle of one of her sets when a very familiar voice behind her said, “Uhm, excuse me?”

“What?” Beau whirled mid-kick and ended up banging her toes into the bag, “Ow! Fuck!” She grabbed her foot and hopped around, “What!?” Glancing up, she saw Yasha’s concerned face. “Uh, hi, Yasha.”

“Hi, Beau; I’m sorry I didn’t mean to startle you. Are you alright?”

“Yeah, yeah, just bruised it; what’s up?”

“Well I know you’re off-duty but I was looking for a spotter and you’re the only person here I know.”

“Oh yeah, I can totally do that,” Beau became aware that she was still holding her foot and set it down quickly, flinching as it hit the mat.

“Are you sure you’re alright?”

“I’m fine, just need to wait for the throbbing to go down so I can walk but I can still move it so it’s not broken which is great.” Beau gave an awkward double thumbs-up, internally cringing at herself.

Yasha seemed to hesitate for a second before blurting out “I could carry you? If you want?”

Beau’s brain came to a screeching halt as she processed that sentence, “uhh…”

“Or, you could lean on me, of course; I mean I feel bad because it’s my fault that you hurt yourself and I don’t want you to be in pain while you walk so I just thought that, you know, I could help.”

“Uhh yeah, yeah that would be great, y’know; like it’s not _bad_ but it’s still kinda painful so like I appreciate the help.” _Shut_ up _Beau!_ Her inner monologue of ‘ _fuckfuckfuck’_ was cut off as Yasha scooped her up off the ground in a fireman’s carry. It was definitely not what she was expecting but she couldn’t bring herself to be bothered. They made their way to the weight room, earning a few astonished glances. Beau just grinned and flipped everyone off.

“Ok, I’m going to put you down now.” Yasha gently lowered her back to the floor, waiting till she had her balance before letting her go.

“That was fucking awesome,” Beau said, totally in awe. She’d known that she was attracted to strong women but until now she’d had no idea just how strong Yasha was and damn it was kinda hot. Luckily she managed not to blurt that out as they moved over to one of the machines and Yasha starting doing reps.


	9. Noticing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yasha has feelings, Molly has frustrations, who better to talk to than your best friend?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all wanted more Yasha and I mean who can blame you, may the Stormbringer bless her and Ashley Johnson

Yasha was conflicted. She’d walked off-campus to a small park she’d found her freshman year and was sitting under a tree near the small stream that formed one edge of the park. Molly was the only other person she’d brought here, and they’d never seen any other students there since it was a fair hike from campus, so they considered it their haven. They’d scattered wildflower seeds at the end of her freshman year and had enjoyed watching them blossom and spread since. She picked a few idly, pressing them into her journal as she sat and thought.

 

People didn’t usually pay attention to her, once they got used to her, and very few people stood out to her. Yet Beau had managed to do both. Yasha had seen her the previous year, when Beau was a freshman, but had chosen to ignore her at the time. The only significant difference between her and the other fresh-faced newbies was that she seemed to actually be as tough as she acted. This year…something had changed. Yasha had been gone most of last spring semester and Beau had not been around when Yasha was doing summer courses and the woman that returned that fall had been…noticeable. And she had noticed Yasha in return. It was…different, and she wasn’t sure yet if that was a good thing or a bad thing. These kinds of feelings were not something she had ever spent a lot of time dwelling on.

“Penny for your thoughts,” Molly said as he plopped down next to her, coat spreading out on the grass.

“Just…going through everything. You talk first, I still need to think.”

“Fair enough. Mind if I rant about Caleb again?”

“Not at all.”

“I still can’t tell if he actually likes me or just puts up with me, it’s very frustrating. I’m charming, I know that; I’m also obnoxious, I know that too; but neither seem to affect him. If there’s some other approach I need to take with this I can’t for the life of me figure out what it is.”

“Maybe he needs to get used to you.”

“I’m in the library practically every week! I’ve been in there more times this semester than all of the previous ones combined, and he’s been there at least 80% of the time. How could he not be used to me by now?”

“You said yourself, you try not to bother him too much while he’s working. He’s used to seeing you but does he really know who _you_ are? How much have you talked to him outside of the library?”

“Not much,” Molly admitted, “He’s not around a lot, I think he leaves as soon as he’s done for the day. Not a lot of opportunities to have a nice chat. Then again,” Molly started to smile as a twinkle appeared in his eye, “There’s nothing that says I can’t make my own opportunities.” He grinned, leaning against Yasha and playing with a clover that he’d picked while he was ranting. Four leaves, as usual with Molly. “So, tell me what’s on your mind.”

Yasha ran her fingers over the flowers and the grass, “How do you know when you like someone?”

“Like _like_ like? Like more than a friend like?”

“Yeah, like that.”

Molly took in a deep breath, settling more comfortably against her arm, “Well…I suppose it’s when they’re the first person you see in a room; no matter how many people are there, your eyes find them first. You start to realize that they’re always just in the back of your mind; even when you’re not thinking about them, you could be at any moment. You find yourself being reminded of them by the smallest things, a smell, a flash of color, a piece of clothing in the window. And you miss them.”

Yasha looked down at the flower she’d started twirling in her fingers: blue. A very familiar shade of blue. She opened her journal to a fresh page and gently pressed the flower into it. As Molly started to doze, she plucked another flower and began idly pulling off the petals, a childish mantra repeating in her head. She knew it was silly, believing her fate was determined by a flower, but that didn’t stop the slight flutter of her heart, when the petals ended on an odd number.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> “How do you know when you like someone?”  
> “Like /like/ like? Like more than a friend like?”  
> “Yeah, like that.”
> 
> Honestly, probably some of my favorite dialogue I've ever written


	10. A Small Favor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Mister Caleb."  
> “Mister Mollymauk?”  
> “I have a slight favor to ask.”

“Mister Caleb,” Molly slid into the seat across from Caleb, sketchbook in hand. 

Caleb looked up, slightly wary at Molly’s unfamiliar, somewhat serious tone. “Mister Mollymauk?”

“I have a slight favor to ask.”

He leaned back a little, “How slight?”

“For my drawing class we’re supposed to practice drawing people, and I was wondering if it would be alright for me to draw you?”

“Why?”

“Well for one thing you actually sit still when you’re studying, unlike a lot of my friends. I can ask someone else if you’re not comfortable with it though, I just saw you here and thought I might as well try.”

There was a moment where Caleb wanted to say no, to ask Molly to find someone else and to get back to his books, but he could tell that Molly was being serious and it made him hesitate. Yes, it was entirely possible this was some bizarre joke; yes, Molly seemed to have a particular tendency to mess with Caleb; yes, this could come back to bite him in the ass. But Caleb’s gut wasn’t telling him that something was wrong.

“Alright, but if you start distracting me I will ask you to leave.” 

“You won’t even know I’m here,” Molly promised, the irony of that not passing Caleb. He settled into a cross-legged posture on the library chair, sketchbook in his lap, and got to work. 

Caleb had honestly expected to be distracted, to be hyper-aware of Molly’s presence and watching eyes. Instead, Molly barely glanced up at him; the scratching of the pencil and the flipping of pages blended in with the sounds of everyone else studying. As Molly drew, Caleb focused on the books in front of him, taking careful notes on common themes that he would use in his thesis. One hand traced down the lines of poetry while the other scratched out messy shorthand he would decipher at home. Just his luck, the books he’d needed he’d had to get through an interlibrary loan which meant he couldn’t get an extension, and he hadn’t settled on a thesis until last night, _and_ the books were due at the end of the night which meant now was the only opportunity he had to read through them. It was mostly scanning, committing everything to memory, but he still wanted to take the time while he had it to jot down any initial thoughts and feelings.

When Caleb reached the end of the last book, he shut it and sat back with a tired sigh, rubbing his face with his hands. He’d forgotten Molly was there until he pulled his hands down and was abruptly met with brown eyes. It was the first time he’d noticed the color of Molly’s eyes; they were warm, like a lit cabin in the middle of a snowy forest.

“All done there?” Molly asked.

“Ja,” Caleb stretched to crack his back and started rubbing the cramps out of his hands, “Did you get what you needed?”

“And then some, thank you again.” Molly shut his sketchbook and started stretching out his hands as Caleb gathered his materials. “Can I interest you in joining me for a late-night dinner at the hottest dining hall on campus?”

There was a faint hint of a smile on Caleb’s face as he packed his messenger bag, “That is certainly a very tempting offer, but I think I would just like to go home.”

“Alright,” Molly shrugged, “If you change your mind, you know where to find me.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Caleb gathered up the books to drop at the returns desk, “Good night, Mister Mollymauk.”

“Good night, Mister Caleb.” Molly left with a grin and a wink,

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's a slow burn, but it'll pay off in the end
> 
> I have a list of scenes and snippets that I will be including in future chapters but if there's something specific y'all want to see feel free to let me know :)


	11. In Which Beau Totally Isn't Pining

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jester tries to give romantic advice but doesn't know what the procedure is for "Useless Lesbian Syndrome"

“I still don’t see why you can’t just _talk_ to her,” Jester said to Beau as they sat up in one of the trees on the edge of campus. 

Beau groaned, gently banging her head against the trunk, “Be _cause_ , she’s just so hot, I get tongue-tied every-time I see her.”

“Basically she’s so hot you can’t think straight.” Jester grinned as Beau flipped the bird.

“You’ve been spending too much time with Fjord.”

“I know, it’s pretty great.” Jester bounced on her branch a little. “Anyways, I agree, I think Yasha is really pretty, and Molly says she’s _super_ nice; but I feel that way about Fjord too and I can talk to him just fine so I’m not sure how to help you.”

“You mean you’ve never seen someone so attractive that your brain just immediately shuts down?”

“I mean,” Jester shrugged, “My mom taught me how to talk to _anyone_ so even if I don’t like the person I can pretend well enough.”

“That sounds like a very useful technique but also kinda weird to teach a kid.”

“Weeeell,” Jester said in that way that meant whatever she’d just said wasn’t as innocuous as it seemed, “It was mostly in case the police or somebody came by.”

“Do I want to know why the police might have been stopping by? Actually,” Beau sat up and leaned forward, “scratch that, I totally want to know.”

“Ok!” Jester leaned in as well, “So when my mom came here she had a temporary visa, and when that expired she had a fake one made so she could keep staying while she worked towards citizenship and built her business.”

“Which is what again?”

“ _Technically_ it’s a massage parlor…but a few more things than that go on if you know what I mean,” Jester’s voice dropped as she switched to her innuendo tone.

“Gotcha.”

“So while that was going on she needed someone not suspicious to be very nice to anyone snooping around. She’s a citizen now and all of those papers are real so she doesn’t have to worry about that anymore, which is very nice!”

“And the uh, unofficial business?”

Jester just grinned.

“I really want to meet your mom one of these days.”

Jester gasped excitedly and grabbed onto Beau’s arm, almost tipping them both out of the tree, “You should come home with me for the holidays! I can call my mom and have her set up a room for you, or you can stay in my room!”

“Are you sure it’ll be ok?” Beau asked carefully, not wanting to get her hopes up even though that sounded like the best thing ever.

“I’m _sure_ it will be! And even if you can’t stay with us I can stay here with you and she can come up to visit, that way you still get to meet her!”

“Jester, you don’t have to do that…”

“I know, I want to.” Jester got a little more serious for a moment, “Beau, you’re my best friend, I don’t want you to spend Christmas on a lonely campus again. Besides, my mom has been looking forward to meeting you too. I’ve told her _all_ about you.”

“I’m surprised I came up in between you pining after Fjord,” Beau joked, trying not to tear up.

Jester pushed her gently, “Better than you always pining after Yasha.”

“I don’t _pine!_ ”

“‘ _Oooh Yasha, she’s sooo hot! I’m sooo gay for her!’_ ” Jester said in a poor imitation of Beau, swooning on her branch.

Beau shoved her playfully, “Oh shut up!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Beau spent Christmas at school the previous year, Jester didn't find out until she got back and promised herself it wouldn't happen again


	12. Hypothetical Philosophical Nonsense

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Molly and Fjord talk about life, fate, and the humor of the universe

Fjord would’ve been lying to say he wasn’t surprised to find Molly in their room on a Friday afternoon. Though they were only a few weeks into the semester, Molly had settled back into  his apparently very active social life and was rarely to be found in the room before midnight. Of course midterms were approaching fast so it was plausible Molly had decided to sequester himself into the room to study, but if so then he had apparently decided to take a break because laying on your back with your head hanging off the bed and a zoned out look was not typically how people studied.

“Y’alright there, Molly?” Fjord asked, setting his stuff down and starting to change out of his work-out gear.

“Just contemplating the intricacies of life, fate, and the humor of the universe.”

“You uh, wanna talk about it?”

Molly hummed, still contemplating, feet kicking in the air, “Hypothetical question: what would you do if you thought that life and fate had brought you to a crossroads of irony and now the universe was laughing at you?”

Fjord paused in the middle of pulling on a fresh shirt, giving Molly a very confused look, “Pardon?”

“It feels like I’m in the middle of some cosmic joke, one that I’m not in on.”

“Well, I don’t know about cosmic, but I think I’ve been where you’re talkin’ about.”

“What did you do?”

“Proved ‘em wrong, flipped ‘em the metaphorical -and sometimes literal- bird.”

Molly smirked, rolling over onto his stomach, “A southern gentleman like you? I can’t imagine.”

Fjord returned the smirk, “I might’ve been raised a gentleman, but I sure wasn’t raised a fool.”

“What a fascinating place the south must be, I must be sure to visit.”

“I’m sure you’d be a smash hit in my hometown, just be careful you don’t give any of the old folks a heart attack.”

“I haven’t the faintest idea to what you might be referring.”

“Riiight,” Fjord let his drawl come out a little stronger, making sure the sarcasm was obvious.

“Are you mocking me?” Molly teased, knowing the answer.

“I would never,” Fjord lied.

“ _Well_ ,” Molly rolled back over in a huff, “I was going to ask for your help but now I don’t think I’ll waste my time.”

“Another hypothetical question?”

“Nothing of the sort. I need models so I can practice drawing people for class, interested?”

“I’m uh, I don’t know Molly, I’m not really the ‘modelling’ type.”

“First of all,” Molly rolled over again so he could sit up on the edge of the bed, “You are a fine specimen of a human being, in more ways than one. Second, no one else has to see the drawings except my professor and a peer who will offer critique which personally I think is ridiculous because we don’t know what we’re talking about. I don’t care how many semesters of art we’ve all taken, we are all full of shit.”

“At least you’re self-aware enough to include yourself in that.”

“I am _always_ aware of my own ignorance; I don’t know _anything_ , it’s part of my charm.”

“Right,” Fjord took that with a bit more skepticism. “I’ll think about the modelling thing, but I’m not makin’ any promises.”

“Of course. Like I said though, you are a _fine_ specimen.” Molly winked, grinning as Fjord gave him an unimpressed look.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I so wanted to use the line "Molly is more Kinky Boots than cowboy boots" but couldn't find quite the right place for it so enjoy it here in the end notes


	13. Yasha & Jester

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yasha makes an inevitable new friend

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I realized Yasha and Jester hadn't actually met yet, so here's that :)

“Excuse me,”

Jester looked up at the soft voice, and found herself looking up and up and up, until she reached Yasha’s face, “Yes?”

“You’re Jester, right?”

“Yes! And you’re Yasha! Molly has told me about you, would you like to sit?”

“Thank you.” Yasha set her food down on the table and took the seat across from Jester. “I’m sorry for bothering you, I normally sit with Molly but I got out of class early and he’s staying longer to work on a project.”

“No no no! You’re not bothering me, I’ve been wanting to meet you!” Jester pressed her hands together excitedly, refraining from clapping as she knew that would draw attention. “So, I have a question,”

“Yes?”

“What is your favorite color and pastry?”

Yasha blinked, “My what?”

“Your favorite color and pastry! I think those are the two most important things you should know about a new friend.”

“I suppose…dark grey and those little cookies with the nuts and powdered sugar?’

“Oh! You mean Mexican wedding cakes?”

“Yes I think so.”

“I _love_ those! One of the women who works in the grocery store my mom and I go to makes those all the times for holidays! I’ll have to remember to bring some back next time I’m home.”

“You don’t have to do that-“

“I _really_ do, there are not a lot of good pastry places around here,” She leaned in close to whisper, “ _some of them don’t even use cinnamon on their scones_.”

“Do all scones have cinnamon?” Yasha was fascinated. There was something oddly intriguing about this conversation.

“Well not _all_ of them,” Jester admitted, “but the _really_ good ones have just the right amount of cinnamon, and none of the scones around here have the right amount of cinnamon. It’s really pretty sad actually; I’ve been trying to find a decently working stove on campus so I can make my own scones; I’m thinking about having a tea party before finals.” Jester suddenly gasped and put her hands on Yasha’s, “I’m going to have a tea party before finals, would you like to come?”

“Oh…I don’t know Jester, I’m not very good with a lot of people…”

“Well what if it’s only a few people? I think more than like ten would be too many anyways; once we get close to finals there’s going to be a _lot_ if stress and you don’t want that much in the same room.”

“Are you planning on having this party in your room?”

Jester pretended to consider that, “I mean, if we put all the furniture in the hall and people get really close together then we could probably fit with _juuust _ enough room for like a small table where we can put the teapot and the cookie tray. Or we can just keep passing the tray around so there’s room for a vase of flowers or something to make the room a little prettier.”

“Will I have to wear a fancy dress and hat,” Yasha mimed a wide brim around her head, “like the ones you see at the Kentucky Derby?”

“You can if you want to,” Jester grinned, resting her chin on her hands, “I think you would look really pretty. But dress codes make things boring so pretty much as long as you’re dressed you’re fine. Does this mean you’ll come???” She perked up, almost vibrating in her seat.

“I will definitely think about it, it sounds like it would be a lot of fun,” Yasha smiled softly, “And I promise I’ll wear clothes."

“Excellent!”


	14. Molly's Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Most people don't write letters anymore, but Mollymauk Tealeaf has never been most people

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this while listening to Rick Astley's new album [ Beautiful Life ](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlaN88a7y2_r24iHfhNMGs-La9cuLiUQc) and y'all, highly recommended  
> Title and premise inspired by Star Trek: TNG episode Data's Day
> 
> WARNING: End notes contain spoilers for most recent episode

Dear Dad,

It’s been a remarkably dull few weeks since my last letter. Exams are happening everywhere and I swear I’m getting second-hand anxiety-hives from some of these freshmen. It’s really tempting to offer something to help “calm them down” but I’m pretty sure at least half of them would nark on me. Fucking-freshies. Was I ever that nervous? As a freshman I mean, not in my general life because we both know the answer to that. I’m managing well, been doing a lot of drawings of people which has been kind of challenging. Remind me when I’m home that I want to draw you and Uncle Bo if that’s alright.

Because I know you’re going to ask, Yasha is doing well and sends her love. She’s as charming as always as in fact seems to have gotten herself an interesting admirer. It’s a young woman by the name of Beau who works at the campus gym and has “disaster lesbian” written all over her. I’m honestly not sure sometimes if _she’s_ aware of how much and how badly she’s flirting with Yasha. Yasha, for her part, is trying to figure out if she’s actually interested or just intrigued by the novelty of the experience. Personally, and I will deny I ever said this, I think it could work well. I don’t mind Beau, she’s a bit abrasive but she tries to be aware of boundaries and actually makes an effort.

Speaking of brewing romances, I’ve been waiting to tell you since I wasn’t sure where it was going to go but darling Jester is absolutely smitten with Fjord and my poor roommate doesn’t know what do to. He adores her, how could he not, but I’m not sure he realizes first of all that she is smitten with him and second of all that he is _just_ as smitten with her. If this goes on till December I’m definitely making them play rigged Spin-The-Bottle. I know I said I would stop but you don’t live here Dad, you don’t know.

Now before you ask or figure it out or read in the stars or whatever you do to always seem to know, yes I have met someone that I’m interested in. However, I don’t know if he feels the same, and I want to be sure this time. He doesn’t feel like the same kind of risk-taker I am. If something happens you’ll be the first to know, I promise.

Miss you lots, love you more, see you when I’m home!

Love Molly

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am...angry and heartbroken about what happened. But I promise you now that this Mollymauk will Not Die. The Iron Shepherds probably won't even show up here. I planned out the trajectory of this story before a lot of things happened with CR and don't plan to change it now. After all, what else are AUs for?  
> If you would like a response letter I will happily add one, I just needed to do this ASAP
> 
> This chapter is dedicated in loving, living memory of Mollymauk Tealeaf


	15. As You Wish

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jester has something she needs to ask Fjord

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Back to the light-hearted stuff :)  
> While we may not have Fjord and Jester around to flirt on screen for a while they will always be flirting in our hearts

“Oh Fjoooord,” 

He looked up, already smiling at the familiar accent, “Afternoon, Jester.”

She plopped down on the grass next to him, skirt spreading out around her, “What are you working on?”

“Tryin’ to do some biology homework.”

“Oh yeah, Beau’s been working on that too, she keeps banging her head against the desk. Is it that hard?”

“Well, if I knew what they were askin’ me it might be easier, but it’s like the professor turned on auto-fill and let her stupid cats walk across the keyboard.” Fjord sighed and put the homework down, rubbing his eyes, “I’ll give it another look over the weekend. How’s your artwork comin’ for class?”

“You mean the architecture sketches?” Fjord nodded. “I’ve pretty much got that done, I’m looking for like one more really good piece to bring it all together. Actually, I wanted to talk to you about a project I have in another class. I need to practice drawing people-“

“And you wanted me to sit for you?”

“Yes!” Jester leaned forward excitedly, “Are you psychic?” she whispered loudly.

Fjord grinned and leaned in as well, “Maybe,” he said with a wink, making Jester giggle in that way that made his heart skip a beat. “Actually, Molly asked me the same thing,” he admitted.

“Oh,” She frowned a little, looking down and picking invisible lint on her skirt, “Well it’s probably going to take a bit of time so if you’re already going to be working with Molly I don’t want to take up more of your time.”

“Well,” Fjord leaned back on his hands, “I haven’t said yes to Molly yet, and I’m pretty sure he’s gotten some drawin’s of other people, so I can check if he’d mind me sittin’ for you instead.”

Jester perked up and leaned in more, putting her hands on Fjord’s knee, “Would you really do that?!”

“Of course, Jester.” Fjord put his hand on hers, “I’d be happy to help you out.”

“Thank you Fjord!” She sprang forward, throwing her arms around his neck, “You’re the best!”

Fjord hesitantly brought his hands up and rested them on her back, “No problem.”

Jester sat back and pulled out a pocket-sized journal, “Here, I don’t think we’ve exchanged numbers yet which is just so weird but I’m going to give you my number now and we can figure out a time. Or, if Molly decides to be a dick then at least you have my number so we can complain about it.” She tore out the paper and handed it to him, “There you go, I’ll see you later!” She sprang to her feet and leaned down to give him another hug before dashing off.

Fjord watched her go, then leaned back to fall down onto the grass with a groan. He pulled out his phone and added Jester to his contacts, smiling at the little heart she’d drawn under her number. Then he texted Molly:

_‘Hey you remember how I haven’t complained at all to the RA about the number of times I’ve been sexiled?’_

The response was almost immediate: _‘I see where this is going. What do you want?’_

_‘I just told Jester I’d sit for her, which means I probably won’t be able to do it for you’_

_‘Sit?_

_Oh you mean model?'  
_

_‘Yeah’_

_‘Well as much as I am heartbroken by this betrayal I’m never one to stand in the way of love so go git ‘er cowboy’_ with a very suggestive emoji.

_‘….thanks’_


	16. Nott Lost

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nott's been on the campus before, just not this particular side of it. Luckily, she runs into someone who can help

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes the title is a pun. No I'm not sorry

Nott glanced around the campus, hoping to spot Caleb among the students on their way to and from class. Unfortunately, he was nowhere to be seen. She sighed and pulled her scooter into a parking spot, resigning herself to walking across to the library. It wasn’t that bad of a walk until people who thought that short=child tried to help her find a parent or older sibling. Nott usually managed to park closer to the library where she could just duck in and either find Caleb right away or hang out behind the desk with other workers who knew her. 

After a few moments, Nott realized that she’d ended up in a part of campus she was less familiar with…and had no idea which direction the library was. She sighed and tugged her hood up around her face, hoping that if she didn’t look like she was lost people wouldn’t notice her as easily. Unfortunately this had the result of making her run right into someone.

“Hey!” The voice was gruff and annoyed, Nott couldn’t distinguish whether it was male or female. “Watch where you’re going kid. You lost or something?”

Nott glared up from under her hood, “No, I’m not! I know exactly where I’m going.”

“Uh-huh.” The woman, as Nott now guessed, didn’t look like she believed her but also didn’t look like she cared. She was wearing sweatpants and had her hoodie open over a sports bra. Between that and the bag on her shoulder, Nott guessed she’d just come from the gym. “Well my tutor’s waiting for me so if you are lost I’m sure you can find someone else to help you, I need to get to the library.”

“Wait,” Nott said as the woman kept walking, “The library’s that way?”

“Yeah, why?”

“…that’s where I need to go.” Nott admitted.

To her credit, the woman tried not to make it too obvious that she wanted to groan. “Ok, come on. I don’t need to hold your hand, do I?”

“I’m 21.”

“That’s a no then. Awesome.” She hitched her bag up and started walking again, “Coming or what?”

Nott followed behind. The woman walked with an even pace that was easy to keep up with, glancing every now and then to make sure Nott was still with her. Once they reached the library, the woman hopped up the stairs and opened the door, holding it open behind her for Nott.

Caleb was sitting at a table in view of the door. He looked up when Nott and the woman entered, glancing between them with a surprised look on his face. “Beau,” He greeted the woman as she approached, “Nott.”

“Wait,” Nott looked from the woman to Caleb, “Caleb’s your tutor? This is Beau?”

“Yeah,” Beau said, crossing her arms, “What about it? Wait,” She turned to Caleb, “Have you been talking about me?”

“Nott is my best friend and my roommate, we talk about people.”

“What do you say about me?”

“He said you’re a bit aggressive,” Nott informed her, pretty sure based on what little she knew about Beau that it would be taken as a compliment. “But he also said that someone called you a heinous bitch and you didn’t punch them in the face.”

Beau smirked, “It was a movie quote. But also true.” She dropped her bag and sat down leaning the chair back on two legs, “So you stickin’ around?”

“Nope,” Nott reached into her bag and pulled out a plastic container, “Just came to drop this off.” She slid it over to Caleb, “Eat it. _Before_ it gets cold. I’ll see you when I get home.”

“Ja,” Caleb accepted the container a little sheepishly, “thank you. See you at home.”

Beau held up a finger, “Hang on, I have a question.”

Nott crossed her arms and braced herself, “What?”

“What kind of name is Nott?”

“What kind of name is Beau?”

She squinted at Nott, then shrugged, “Fair enough. I have another question though.”

“What?”

“Do you need help finding your way back or do you actually know where you’re going this time?” Beau smirked as Nott casually flipped her off, returning the gesture.

Caleb looked between them and sighed, “I’m going to regret you two meeting, aren’t I?”

The grin Beau gave him was not reassuring, “Yeah probably.”


	17. Thicker Than Water

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yasha's not used to being around a lot of people, but she might make an exception for this group

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes I am back from hiatus! Thank you all for your patience while I wrote [ "Who The Hell Is Molly" ](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15699612%20rel=) and struggled to figure out how to pick this up  
> There's plenty more to come and I hope you're looking forward to it as much as I am :)

 

 

“Yasha!”

Yasha turned and saw Jester across the dining hall, waving to her from an already slightly crowded table. She considered just waving and finding someplace more private until she saw a tattooed hand with painted nails was laying on the back of the chair at the end, reserving it for her. Molly turned and gave her a wave as well, smiling as Jester started using her other hand to signal their location. When Yasha got closer, she could see that the other people at the table weren’t the strangers she was worried they would be. Molly’s roommate (Ford? Fjord?) was sitting next to Molly, arm wrestling with Beau while Caleb (recognizable from the multiple times Molly had pointed him out) sat next to her, intensely focused on a book, trying to avoid getting elbowed.

“Hello,” Yasha said quietly, setting down her plate.

Molly pushed the chair out for her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders when she sat down, giving her a half-hug. “Hello darling, how’s your week been?”

Before Yasha could answer there was a loud thump followed by a quieter “Fuck!” from Fjord as Beau slammed his hand down onto the table.

“Sorry.” She sounded like she was trying to be sincere but she also wasn’t looking at anyone, especially not at Yasha and Molly.

“’s’alright, I think you just bruised it.” Fjord shook out his hand, nodding at Yasha in greeting. “Nice to see ya again.”

“Hello,” Caleb waved awkwardly, “I am Caleb Widogast, I don’t think we’ve actually met.”

“Yasha, nice to meet you. Are you Beau’s friend?” She knew exactly who he was but she couldn’t tell him that without revealing Molly’s interest.

“Officially I’m her tutor but I think we have formed a weird comradeship from putting up with each other so much. She’s also met my roommate and they get along, so I think I’m stuck with her.”

“More like I’m stuck with you,” Beau nudged him with her elbow, “She keep texting me to remind you to eat.”

“You’re roommate’s a she?” Molly tried to seem casual about it but Yasha could see him tapping his fingers against his leg.

“Ja, we agreed to share an apartment when I started school because I did not want to live on campus.”

“Are you two close?”

Caleb shrugged, “I’ve never had a sister before but I think she fits the bill.”

“Aww!” Jester leaned in, “That’s so sweet! I always wanted a sister but the closest I had was the little kids in the building that I helped look after.” She gasped and turned to Beau, grabbing her arm, “Beau! Do you want to be my sister?”

Beau grinned, “Fuck yeah! I’d take you over my actual family any day.”

Jester squeaked happily and half tackled Beau into a hug, catching her off guard and almost sending her crashing into Caleb. Beau recovered though and returned the hug, a wide smile on her face.

Yasha had to catch her breath; Beau’s cocky grin, very different from her usual smirk, had been disarming but her smile was beautiful. Molly, relaxed again now that he knew Caleb didn’t have a secret girlfriend, glanced at her and gently squeezed her arm to stop her from staring before she got caught. He glanced at her with the sympathetic look of someone who knew what it felt like to be unexpectedly smitten with someone you didn’t realize you were that interested in. If she was a little quitter than usual while they finished their meal, no one commented, though more than one person noticed.


	18. I am Nott

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nott has a very unexpected encounter

The last thing Nott was expecting to find when she went up to her silent corner tucked away in the back of the upper floor of the library, was another person. Especially not a person with a very colorful coat and glittery jewelry and bright purple hair. Everything about them screamed “look at me” and yet they were in the last place anyone would even think to look. They seemed to be studying from their twisted perch on the chair, curled around a book with neither feet on the floor. In fact one of their feet seemed to be dangling over back.

As Nott paused, just within view, they looked up and smiled, almost instantly turning on the charm. “Afternoon, you lookin’ for something?”

“No, this is where I usually come to study.”

“You don’t go here, do you? I’ve never seen you before.”

“It’s a large campus.”

“Not that large, I’m pretty familiar with everyone’s faces here. Not that it really matters to me I was just trying to figure out if I was supposed to know you.” They swung their leg down to rest on the floor and stretched, reminding Nott of Frumpkin waking up from a map. “I’ll give you your spot back then, it hasn’t really done anything for me except make me tired. Though,” They looked down at the book in their hand, “Perhaps that’s unfair to your spot.”

“Wait, you’re just going to leave? Just like that?” It seemed almost too easy.

“I mean,” They shrugged, “If you want me to stay I’m more than happy to but I’m getting nowhere in this fucking thing,” They waved the book, “And I want to see if the cute librarian is still there."  
“Caleb?”

“Ah, you know him then? Would you be able to answer a question for me then?”

“I mean,” She shifted on her feet a little, “I don’t know him _very_ well.”

The colorful person tilted their head at her, considering her answer. “Your name wouldn’t happen to be Nott, would it? He mentioned he lived off campus with someone named Nott and since I’ve never seen you on campus before but you know Caleb and it seemed like too much of a coincidence for me not to ask.”

“I am…Nott.”

“You’re not Nott? Or you’re Nott?”

“No, I’m Nott.”

“You are Nott?”

“I-” She stopped, head starting to spin, “Who the hell are _you_?”

“Mollymauk Tealeaf, Molly to my friends,” They bowed with a flourish, “Pleasure to meet you.”

Nott crossed her arms, whoever this Molly person was they clearly thought they were charming but she wasn’t swayed. “Why do you want to know about Caleb?”

“Because I’m interested in him.”

“In what way?”

“In any way he’ll let me.” Molly grinned and scooped up their messenger bag, “Nice to meet you, Nott. Enjoy your corner!” They breezed past, waving over their shoulder as they headed towards the stairs.

Nott watched them go for a bit before pulling out her phone and texting Caleb. “ _Do you know a Molly?”_

_“He’s an upperclassman. Very colorful. Rooms with Beau’s friend, might be Beau’s friend as well. Why do you ask?”_

_“Just ran into him upstairs, he’s heading your way. Do I need to be worried about him?”_

_“I’m pretty sure he’s harmless. Thank you. I’ll text you when I finish my shift.”_

_“I brought containers at home so we can stop by the dining hall”_

_“Ok. Molly just got here. See you later.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What was Molly going to ask? We'll never know
> 
> Yes Caleb is the type of person who ends his texts with periods


	19. Signs of Confection

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fjord needs some help from the library info desk, Caleb is on the job!

“Pardon me, Caleb? Right?”

Caleb suppressed a groan, there were too many people paying attention to him these days, and he wasn’t entirely sure who’s fault it was, but he was pretty sure he could get away with blaming it on Molly (and that Molly would happily take the credit). When he looked up, he was relieved to see Fjord, one of the saner people among the group.

“Ja, guten Nachmittag, can I help you with something?”

“Yeah Molly asked me to pick up a book for him. I don’t know why he couldn’t do it himself or if I’m even allowed to do it for him but I needed to stop by here anyways.”

“It is unfortunately against library policy to allow students to pick up books on another’s behalf and while with anyone else I might be tempted to make an exception because I know you are not likely to cause shenanigans, I do not want to encourage Molly to test library boundaries the way I’m sure he does every other rule on campus.”

Fjord nodded, half smiling half grimacing, “Yeah that sounds about right. Figured I’d ask anyways. In any case, this may be a stupid question but do you by chance know if there are cookbooks in here?”

Caleb woke up the computer and started pulling up the database, “Is there a particular kind of cookbook you’re looking for?”

“Somethin’ for baking.”

“There is a title listed here called _Baking in America: traditional and contemporary favorites from the past 200 years_. If you need it right away, I’m afraid it’s checked out and an interlibrary loan would take a few days to arrive.”

“Would it get here before midterms?”

Caleb paused, mentally double checked his internal calendar, and turned to Fjord, “I don’t mean to seem prying or judgmental but, if this is for a midterm assignment, shouldn’t you have gotten it sooner than less than a week before midterms?”

“Well it’s not for midterms per se, y’see Jester was talkin’ the other day about missing the scones they make where she’s from and I was thinkin that I could make some for her since midterms are gonna be hell.”

“Have you tried looking online for something?”

“I did, but I’m trying to mix two different recipes together and the ones I found have slightly different times and temperatures, so I wanted to find a standard recipe to use as a reference.”

“Do you know if the ones at home are homemade or from a store?”

“Homemade.”

“You could ask Beauregard to get in touch with Jester’s _mutter_ and get the recipe. I’m sure she could find a way if you make it a challenge for her.”

Fjord nodded, eyes lighting up as he saw the plan coming together, “Yeah, yeah! That’s a really good idea! Thank you, Caleb.” He pulled his phone out and started to compose a message before stopping and slowly looking back up at Caleb. “I uh, I don’t suppose you have Beau’s number, do you?”

“You don’t?”

“We kinda just keep running into each other and make plans to meet up later, we never actually got around to exchanging numbers.”

“I will text her and get her permission to pass on her number.” He handed Fjord a piece of scrap paper and a pen. “Give me your number so I can text you in case she does not respond in a timely manner, I do not want to keep you.”

Fjord took the paper and wrote down his number as Caleb texted Beau, “Again, thank you, Caleb, I really appreciate this.”

He shrugged, “Hey, I’m at the library info desk, I’m getting you the info.” His phone screen lit up with a message, but it was a reminder from Nott that she was taking an extra shift, so they’d have to run errands tomorrow. “No word from Beauregard, which means it could be a while.”

“Alright; I’ve got some studying I need to get done so I’m going to get find myself a table. If I don’t see ya before I leave, have a good weekend and thanks again for your help.”

“Ja, you too. Good luck with your studying.”

“See ya ‘round, Caleb.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That is an actual book that is available through my library at least so seemed plausible
> 
> I've been on fall break so I've been able to churn out chapters but I do, sadly, have to go back to school soon so things will be slower but I do have plans, especially now that I've gotten them to midterms so stay tuned!


	20. Midterms are Hell

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's the end of midterms week, time for everyone to pick themselves back up off the floor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just as a "keeping you up to date" note, there has not yet been a conclusion to the scones saga so I have not deprived you of Jester's reaction to Fjord baking for her ;)

It seemed like midterms week dragged on for an eternity. Most of the professors were wise and kind enough to coordinate within their department to make sure that there were as few exams and due dates happening on any single day as possible, but there were still a lot of students with exams across multiple departments that ended up all bunched together. The dining hall was pretty much only crowded during the general lunch rush, otherwise there was an ever-changing scattering of people studying, loading up on caffeine, or just vegetating.

Friday evening found a decent section of the campus gone home for the weekend, with the majority of the remainers somewhere out of sight. In a back corner, Beau was slumped onto the table, too tired to even sleep. Jester sat next to her, hands wrapped around a warm cup of coffee to loosen up the cramps from her art assignments. Fjord leaned back in a chair at the end, mind trying to come down from a whirlwind of Gen Ed cramming. Nott was sitting quietly in a chair further from view of the general dining hall; the heat was out in the apartment so she’d taken advantage of her sort-of friendship with Beau to use the showers in the res hall. Jester had invited her along to dinner to wait for Caleb to get off his shift so that Nott could tell him about the heat. Fjord had already offered to let Caleb into his res hall which meant that now they waited.

When Caleb trudged into the dining hall, he acknowledged Jester’s silent wave with a nod before turning in the direction of food. He joined their table with two sad looking slices of pizza. It seemed like the better option compared to the soups that had been put out. He’d also filled his thermos with (decaf) coffee, mostly to decramp his hands using Jester’s current method. He took the seat next to Nott, moving his arm when she leaned against him. They almost looked like a parent and child, Beau noticed, snorting a little into her arms.

“The heat’s out,” Nott said quietly, not wanting to disturb the peace too much. “I showered on Beau and Jester’s floor, Fjord says he can let you into his building.”

“Ok. Thank you, Fjord.”

“No problem.” Fjord settled his chair on the floor, finally asking the question they’d all been avoiding: “How did everyone’s midterms go?”

There was a collective groan at the table, “I think I got high off the paint and marker fumes,” Jester said.

“I just turned in an elf-page paper that I’m not even sure what it was about anymore,” Caleb said into his coffee.

“I think I passed. Barely.” Beau turned to Caleb, “Ikithon said he was ‘very impressed’ with my progress so far.” A shudder went down her spine and Jester scooted closer to offer comfort. Caleb grimaced, unsure whether to congratulate her or offer his condolences.

“And you, Fjord?”

“Praying for the mercy of the curve in bio but otherwise I think I’m alright.” He rapped on the table just in case.

“There they are! See, I knew they’d all be together.” Molly’s voice rang out clearly in the nearly-deserted dining hall. The group at the table turned to see him and Yasha headed their direction. “Well, I don’t believe I’ve ever seen a group of people more in need of a good time in my entire life.

Beau’s first instinct was to blow him off but the part of her brain that really liked bad ideas was a little less restrained when tired, “What kind of bad idea?”

Molly’s grin grew impossibly wider, “I’m so glad you asked.” He pulled a chair over from another table and scooted in next to Fjord. Yasha sat on the edge of the booth seat, trying not to squish Beau into Jester. “I just happen to have acquired a lovely little stash of something, as well as the best booze a college student can afford.”

“Not in the room,” Fjord said almost immediately, “I don’t know what you did but the RA has been on the prowl this week.”

“Oh?” Molly looked amused and delighted, “What makes you think it’s because of me?”

“He passes by our door a lot more than everyone else’s, and I’m pretty sure I’ve seen him peeking out of his door when I leave the room. He never talks to me so he must be waiting for you.”

Beau wrinkled her nose, “What a fucking creep. Our RA is really uptight about the rules but at least she doesn’t spy on our door.”

“I don’t think she’s getting any,” Jester lowered her voice, “ _you know_.”

“I don’t think ours is either,” Molly said, “and if it’s who I think it is then he’s been trying to nail me for years, in more ways than one. Unfortunately for him, I’m not stupid enough to get busted and he’s not my type.” Molly winked at Caleb, making him blush and stare down at his coffee.

“What kind of stash are we talking about here?” Nott asked, leaning forward to look at Molly from Caleb’s other side.

“I’m not entirely sure. It’s some kind of dried fungus I think. I got it from my usual guy and he’s a nice upstanding fellow. He grows all of his own stuff and I’ve seen the set-up, it’s very impressive and very organic.”

“Organic dried fungus. Well,” Beau shrugged, “first time for everything, I guess. Too bad our RAs suck.”

“I’ll save it for when the heat’s died down a little,” Molly promised, “No fun trying something new on your own. In any case, if we’re not going to do that I do have a new tarot deck I need to get familiar with.”

Jester gasped and nearly jumped out of her seat in excitement, “Can you tell our fortunes?”

“I knew you were going to ask that,” Molly grinned. “That’s one yes, who else is in?”

“Sure, I’ll join in,” Fjord nodded.

“Fuck it, nothing better to do.” Beau sat up and stretched, “I’ll come watch, I don’t think I want you poking around in my past, present, or future.”

“Don’t trust me?”

“Nope.”

“Probably for the best.”


	21. Fortune & Fate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tarot readings and more ensue

They relocated to Molly and Fjord’s room, snagging some extra food on their way out. Caleb borrowed a towel and some shower supplies from Molly, blushing and muttering his thanks. He also borrowed some clothes as Jester insisted on taking his clothes to the washing machine (ceding only to not washing the coat as it would have been too much to empty out all the pockets).

“You know,” Jester said, holding it up, “if you want, I can repair the holes. I have some really cute scraps pieces if you want patches, or I can just sew them up so no one sees them.”

“Uh maybe another time, Jester, thank you. I will be back shortly.”

In the meantime, Molly and Jester settled cross-legged on the floor with the others sitting around them on chairs and beds. “What is your question?” Molly asked, shuffling the cards in his hands.

“Hmm.” Jester’s face scrunched up in concentration as she thought about it. “I want to know about my dad. My mom’s told me a few things but I want to know if he’s like still _alive_ , and if I’m ever going to _meet_ him.”

“Ah, a very important question. Let’s see what comes up,” He did a quick, one-handed shuffle, and popped a card up out of the deck, making Jester gasp and clap her hands together in delight. “There’s one. Why don’t you pick the other two?” When Jester had picked her cards, Molly flipped them and leaned over them pensively to study them.

After a little while, Jester leaned forward and pressed her head against Molly’s. “What do they say?” She whispered loudly.

“They say you need to have patience,” Molly whispered back. Jester giggled and punched them gently. “I’m joking but I’m also serious. Look,” He picked one up, “Temperance, it means patience. We also have Judgement here which means that you have a revelation coming. And of course,” He twirled the last one, “The Sun, because you are such a delightful presence and you have good things ahead of you.”

“So does that mean I’m going to find him?”

“It means you will find the right answer when you’re ready for it.”

Jester settled back, chin in her hands, “That’s not very specific.”

“Tarot cards like to be that way.” Molly scooped them up and started shuffling again, “Who’s next? Beau, change your mind? I’ll take that finger as a no.” Molly flipped one back. “Fjord, you seemed interested, ready for a blurry and vaguely helpful look at your future?” Before Fjord could answer, the door opened and Molly turned, “Caleb! You’re just in time, don’t suppose I can-” the rest of the sentence trailed off as Molly got a look at Caleb.

His wet hair had been pulled out of his face into a kind of half ponytail, dripping onto the towel he’d put around his neck. The shirt he’d borrowed from Molly was low-cut and billowy, showing off a hint of ginger chest hair while also giving strong Colin-Firth-in- _Pride-and-Prejudice_ vibes. Caleb had even put on the loaned pants, grateful they were plain black jeans not skinny and so fit surprisingly well. He carried his own clothes in a neatly folded pile that he put on his bag to bring home before removing the towel and holding it out to the still-stunned Molly along with the hair and body wash. The scent of Molly’s lavender wash hung in the air.

“Thank you for letting me borrow these.”

Jester discreetly pinched Molly’s leg, snapping him back to reality. “Uh, right! Of course, anytime. I just wrapped up with Jester, would you like a turn?”

“Nein, not tonight. Perhaps another time. I will get your clothes back to you as soon as I can.”

“No rush,” Molly waved his hand, trying not to turn too abruptly back to the cards, “I don’t think I’ve worn them in a while so I won’t miss them. Fjord, did you want a fortune?”

“You alright there, Molly?” Fjord asked as he traded places with Jester. “You look a little flushed.”

“Fine! Fine.” If he didn’t know that Fjord could be a little oblivious when it came to romance, Molly would think he was being cruel.

“Yeah Molly,” Beau, on the other hand, was not oblivious, “You’re kinda red.”

“It’s just a bit warm in here with so many people, I’m fine.” To support his point, Molly slipped his coat off, rolling up his sleeves to keep them out of the way.

“Not sure what you mean, I’m a little cold actually. Maybe it’s just you.”

“If you’re cold,” Yasha suddenly spoke up, “I could loan you my jacket.”

“Uh…” As Beau’s brain reset, Molly hid his smirk behind shuffling the cards. “Yeah sure; thanks, Yasha.” The dark grey hoodie practically swamped Beau, but she didn’t seem to mind in the least.

As the night came to a close, Nott and Caleb left first, politely declining offers for them to stay the night. Yasha was the next to go, telling Beau she could hold onto the jacket and return it another time. Beau and Jester stayed for a few rounds of cards, switching to Go Fish after Slap Jack proved too hazardous. When they started bundling up to go, Fjord pulled a tin out from the back of his closet, holding it out to Jester while studying the rug intensely.

“I just thought since, y’know, you haven’t been home in a while and I had some free time you might, I dunno, like somethin’ sweet to hold you over till break.”

Jester immediately opened the tin, gasping as the smell hit her first, “ _Fjord_. Are these Mama’s scones?”

“Sorta, I mean I got the recipe from Beau and I haven’t really baked before but-” He was cut off as Jester threw her arms around his neck, planting a big kiss on his cheek.

“Thank you so much, Fjord! Good night, Molly!”

“Night, Jester!”

Molly slapped Fjord on the back after the women left, breaking his stupor, “Well done, Romeo. Very romantic, I approve. You’ve got a little something right here, by the way.” Molly rubbed lightly at the lipstick mark on Fjord’s cheek, careful not to actually smudge it. “I think tonight has been a very productive evening all around, wouldn’t you agree?” Molly gave Fjord another friendly slap, “G’night!”


	22. Sisters, Scones, and Spies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beau and Jester have a late-night chat after the tarot session

 “Auuuuuuugh,” Beau flopped down onto her bed, face first, Yasha’s hoodie pooling around her.

“Are you ok Beau? Do you want a scone?” Jester gently prodded her with the tin, “They’re _really_ good.”

Beau took a scone from the tin, mumbling her thanks as she rolled onto her back, “Jester, if I asked you to kill me right now, would you?”

“No.” Jester sat cross-legged on Beau’s bed, carefully eating a scone over the tin to contain the crumbs.

“What if I asked really, _really_ nicely?”

“Mmm…nope! But you could try, it would probably be really funny!”

Beau flipped her off, taking an angry bite of her scone. “Holy shit, this is good!”

“I know right? He even got the right amount of cinnamon which is _really_ hard to do, Mama must’ve given him great instructions.” Jester poked Beau’s belly, “How did you reach her to get it?”

“Uhhh…” Beau pulled Yasha’s hood over her face, “promise not to get mad?”

Jester leaned in close and lowered her voice, “What did you do, Beau?”

“I may have texted her my number from your phone and deleted the messages so you didn’t see.” She peeked out at Jester’s face and was relieved to see she didn’t look mad, just curious.

“How did you get my password?”

“I watched you put it in one day. I figured it was hack your phone or go through your mail and one has less glitter than the other.”

“I really should clean that up. I can’t believe the _whole_ jar just spilled into the drawer!”

“I’m still finding it on my clothes and shit, fucking craft herpes. If any gets on Yasha’s hoodie, I’m blaming you.”

“If you want we can put cologne or something on it so that she associates that smell with you when you give it back.”

“Why cologne?”

“Because no one is going to believe that you wear perfume.”

“Fair. But I don’t really wear cologne either, so I feel like it’s still weird.”

“What does it smell like now?”

Beau lifted the collar up to her nose, pretending she hadn’t been subtly sniffing it since she got it, “Rain.”

“Ooooo, that’s cool.”

“Speaking of smells, did you get a whiff of Caleb? How does Molly stand smelling like that all the time?”

“I think he only uses it sometimes. I have noticed that Fjord smells like lavender sometimes.”

“Of course you have,” Beau smirked as Jester pushed her. “So does that mean you know what he usually smells like?”

“Maaaybe…he may have loaned me his jacket one time when it was really cold in class.”

“You never get cold.”

Jester shrugged, “He doesn’t need to know that.”

“Jester Lavorre, you shady lady.”

Jester giggled and lay down next to Beau. “Hey Beau, can I ask a stupid question?”

“Sure, Jester.”

“This means that Fjord likes me, right? Like, _like_ likes me?”

“I mean,” Beau shrugged, “I’m not an expert on _men_ , but if _I_ went to the effort of secretly getting a homemade recipe and making scones, it wouldn’t be for just anyone, y’know?”

“Yeah,” Jester smiled. They were quiet for a little while until all of a sudden Jester shot up with a gasp, “I have to get him a gift to tell him I like him too!”

“Couldn’t you just, I dunno, _tell_ him?”

“Well yes but I have to have a gift to go with it, something that shows I _really_ like him!” Jester grabbed Beau’s arm tightly, making the other woman wince a little, “You have to help me.”

“What, why?”

“Because you helped him, so it’s only fair.”

“Ugh, fiiiine. Can I sleep first? It’s like 3am.”

“Of course, Beau.” Jester hopped up and changed into her pajamas before turning off the light since it didn’t look like Beau was going to move. She snuggled under her blankets with a happy sigh, “Good night, Beau.”

“Night, Jester.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I live! And I'm done with finals which means winter break!
> 
> I'm thinking about doing a holiday miniseries in the week leading up to Christmas. I was going to do a 12 Days of Christmas but I was writing term papers instead. Since I won't be getting to holiday stuff with these guys yet (it's only October in universe), if you're interested in some holiday one-shots then leaves prompts and requests in the comments. Happy Holidays!


	23. A Goblin in the Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yasha shares a moment with a potential new friend

Yasha was not afraid of the dark, hadn’t been since she was little. The dark felt safe to her, no one was looking, no one else was there except a few other wandering souls and occasionally some trouble, but nothing she couldn’t handle. She knew the back paths and alleys of the area pretty well by now, if there were people she wanted to avoid it wouldn’t be hard. Besides, most people took one look at her and decided to go the other way.

It was as she was passing the side alley of one of the local bars that she heard a crashing noise and a strangely familiar voice saying “Ow! Fuck!”

“Hello?”

Dead silence. Then, “Nobody’s here, go away!”

“Nott?” Now she could place the voice, it was Caleb’s roommate.

“Who’s there?” A head popped up from inside the dumpster, “Yasha?”

“Hi…are you alright?”

“Yep! Totally fine! No problem here.”

“Are you sure?”

“…I may need some help getting out…”

Yasha walked over to the dumpster and gave Nott her hands, letting her use them for leverage as she pressed her feet against the sides of the dumpster and climbed up. Nott stepped out onto a stack of crates next to the dumpster and brushed herself off before picking up a trash bag that was sitting on a lower tier of the crates and hefting it in.

“Thanks, Yasha.”

“No problem.”

“Just so you know,” Nott said a little quickly, “I don’t usually go dumpster diving behind bars. I was taking out the trash and threw the bag too hard and fell in.”

“I wasn’t judging,” Yasha assured her, “I was just going to tell you that I’ve had better luck behind fast food restaurants, if you’re looking.” She shrugged, “Bar dumpsters tend to have more drink leaks.”

Nott looked at her, almost at the same height from her perch on the crates, “The Chinese place clears out their fridge on Wednesday nights,” She shrugged, hands shoved into her hoodie pockets, “If you’re looking. Yasha…”

“Yes?”

“Would you mind not mentioning this to anyone? It’s a little embarrassing to be caught in a dumpster, no matter what the reasons.”

“Of course, Nott. Would you like me to walk with you anywhere?”

Nott glanced around at the dark alley and streets, “If you don’t mind. I don’t want to delay you.”

“I don’t have anywhere to be, I just felt like a walk.”

“In the middle of the night?”

“Fewer people out at this time.”

“That’s true.” They walked out to the streets, Yasha following Nott’s lead towards a community parking lot. “Do you walk around a lot at night?”

“I mean, a few times a week usually, more if it’s been really stressful. I live on campus so I can be close to my classes and the dining hall but I enjoy getting off campus when I can.”

“Does your roommate ever worry about you being out at all hours?”

“I actually live alone, the person I was supposed to room with never showed up and they haven’t placed me with a new person. My past roommates were all random, and we never got close.”

“That sounds kind of lonely.”

“I don’t mind. Besides, I have Molly when I need to be around other people.”

“He does know how to draw attention to himself.” Nott stopped beside a small green moped. “This is mine. I can offer you a ride to campus, but it might be a bit of a squeeze. _Caleb_ has a hard time staying on and he’s practically a twig! Although it would probably help if he stopped trying to read on the road.”

“I can walk back, thank you, Nott.”

“Thank _you._ ” She got on and strapped on her helmet. “I guess I’ll see you around. Good night, Yasha.”

“Good night.”


	24. Bros and Hos

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Beau has a talk with Fjord

Fjord had grown up mostly a morning person, working jobs that required him to be up sometimes even before the sun, and hadn’t seen a reason to break those habits in college. So far it hadn’t bothered Molly, who seemed to work totally without a regular schedule, and he happened to be alone in the room when someone knocked on the door as he was about to head out for a Saturday morning workout. He opened it to find Beau standing there in her usual athleisure wear.

“Hey.”

“Mornin’ Beau. Can I help you?”

“I’m not bothering you, am I?”

“I was just about to go for a jog before hitting the gym; I can wait though, or you could join me, if you’d like.”

“Yeah I’ll come with you.” She fell into step next to him as they headed out of the dorm, “I wanted to talk with you about something.”

“What’s on your mind?”

“I…” she kicked at the ground a little, “How do I _not_ be a dick to people?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean you’re like this really charming guy and people seem to like you a lot and I just piss off everyone I meet.”

“Well not everyone,” Fjord reassured her, “You’ve made a good number of friends here. There’s me and Jester, and Molly and Yasha seem to like you alright. I’m pretty sure you and Caleb are friends at this point, and you said yourself that Nott’s somewhat attached herself to you.”

“Yeah, but I still have to talk to people that aren’t my friends, and I wanna know how to do that without making them terrified or really mad.”

“Well Beau, I appreciate you coming to me with this, and I will certainly do my best to help you.”

“Thanks.” They were headed towards the edge of campus now, the morning fog still curling back. “Sooo, what now?”

“I’d rather not try to coach and workout at the same time so how about I text you when I’m free and we can meet up to start talking about it.”

“Ok, cool. Cool cool,” They stopped on the sidewalk and Beau shuffled her feet for a moment, trying to act casual. “See ya, Fjord.” She turned abruptly on her heel and walked away, not even waiting for a response. As she crossed back to her own dorm, she spotted a familiar, brightly colored figure walking towards her. “Molly?”

“Beau!” He grinned, “Fancy seeing you this morning. Walk of shame?”

“That implies I’ve done something I regret.”

“Or someone.”

“Either way, hasn’t happened yet. What about you?”

“Walk of a different sort,” He held up his shoulder bag, “Fell asleep studying.”

“Wait, seriously?”

Molly opened the flap on the bag to show her his books, “I suppose I should say _trying_ to study. Emerson is not exactly exciting.”

“History?”

“English, essay on nature. The way the man writes you’d swear he wants to fuck a tree; not that I’m trying to kinkshame him or anything, I just don’t see the appeal in sticking it in something that could give you dick splinters.”

Beau snorted, “I’ve known a few people you could call that.”

“Haven’t we all,” Molly stretched his arms over his head, “well, if you’ll excuse me, I’m about to go sleep in a more comfortable spot for an obscenely long time. Ciao!”

“See ya, Molly.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the record, Molly's statements on Emerson /do/ reflect the opinion of the author


	25. A Hallowed Eve

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You are cordially invited to the Tri-Spires Players’ All Hallows’ Eve Performances featuring old and new members reciting original and classic spooky stories and poems.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas! Have a special extended Halloween chapter!

“Mollymauk, was this you?”

Molly looked up from his sketchbook, already smiling at the accented question, “Pardon?” He saw the black card in Caleb’s hand, “Ah, you got the invitation. What do you think? I wasn’t sure whether to do gold or silver so I just tried to balance both.”

“It’s very shiny, I’m surprised it doesn’t have more glitter.”

“Glitter is tragically not spooky unless done absolutely right, and when you’re hand-decorating invitations there’s simply not enough time. So, is this your way of RSVPing?”

“‘You are cordially invited to the Tri-Spires Players’ All Hallows’ Eve Performances featuring old and new members reciting original and classic spooky stories and poems,’” Caleb recited, “Is this some big campus event I didn’t hear about?”

“Not in the slightest,” Molly leaned back, “This is an annual tradition started by yours truly where the thespian society invites their friends and family to enjoy a private performance in honor of the Halloween season.”

“Any particular reason?”

“We lost haunted house privileges after an unfortunate incident that surprisingly had nothing to do with me as I was not here at the time.”

“Why me?”

“I thought you might enjoy seeing classic literature brought to life. You can bring Nott, too, if you want, we’re taking over the theater so there’ll be plenty of seats.”

“When is the latest I can let you know?”

“Well there’s no official RSVP since we won’t be filling the theater so as long as you’re there before we close the doors you’re good.”

“Alright, I will think about it. Thank you, Mister Mollymauk.”

“Of course, Mister Caleb.”

* * *

 

Nott was a little reluctant to go; she liked scary stuff for the most part, but she wasn’t sure about going to a theater production. However, Caleb had decided to go and she didn’t have a shift that night so she tagged along. They entered the theater, receiving programs from a silent, hooded figure at the door, and headed to the front where Nott would be able to see. Both were a little surprised to see Fjord and Beau already there on the end of the row.

“Hey,” Beau greeted them, “Jester give you an invite too?”

“Mollymauk, actually.”

“Me too,” Fjord held up his, “Anyone know what’s going to happen here?”

“Nope,” Beau shrugged, “Jester wasn’t in the thespian society last year so she was doing tech and couldn’t invite anyone.”

“I’ve never gotten an invite before.”

“Neither have I,” Nott added, grinning at Beau’s unamused stare and Fjord’s dawning realization.

“You don’t even go here,” Beau told her.

“I know, I just have a lot of feelings.” Nott took the seat next to Beau, sneaking a sip from her flask as she settled in. Caleb sat on the other side of Nott and pulled out his book, sneaking in a few lines of reading while they waited for the show to start.

The lights went out. Slam! Slam! Slam! The doors at the back of the theater closed, shutting out the light from the hall. Silence fell as the audience waited to find out what would happen next. Whispers came from the shadows, starting in the back corners and spreading down the aisles. There were rushes of wind as people ran by, totally silent. The whispers grew in volume, no discernable words, until they cut out abruptly as a single spotlight came on the stage.

There stood a masked figure, deathly pale, pitch black hair carefully styled. The mask was plain black, as was the suit they wore under a long cape.

“Welcome. A Happy All Hallows’ Eve to you all.” The voice was deep and rumbling. “The things you are about to see and hear tonight are all real and true. But of course, only for tonight, as the spirits walk among us. And so, sit back, relax, and enjoy the show.” They gave a sweeping bow and disappeared into the shadows as the spotlight turned off.

The show opened with a dramatic reading of “The Raven,” enhanced with sounds effects of tapping, and howling wind, and whispers. When the poem came to the entrance of the Raven, a figure in a feathered cloak with a beaked mask stepped forward and must’ve been standing on a hidden platform because he loomed over the speaker. He never spoke, except to echo “Nevermore” in a rasping voice. Even as the speaker’s words grew into a frenzy, and they ended up on their knees with their back to the audience as they pleaded with the Raven to leave, he did not move except to repeat that single word.

Jester’s first appearance on stage was during a performance of “The Green Ribbon.” One performer read the story while Jester and another actor played the parts of Jenny and Alfred. Beau, unfamiliar with the story, exchanged a look with Fjord who just shrugged, having no idea where it was going either. When it came to the end, and the ribbon was removed, there was more than one shriek in the audience when Jester’s head dropped into her hands. She would never admit it, but Beau even jumped into her seat.

The final piece of the evening was an original. There had been a handful through the night, all well-written and well-performed, so the audience sat in anticipation. A light came up on a person sitting on the floor next to their bed. Their knees were pulled up to their chin and their arms curled over their head, covering their face. For a long time, nothing happened, the only sound was breathing. From out of the darkness, figures began to appear. Masked, hooded, or otherwise covered, it was impossible to tell who was who.

Slowly, they crept forward, some even coming down the aisles and up the steps of the stage. They formed a circle around the person, silent, watching, staying just out of the main circle of light. One final figure appeared behind them and crawled onto the bed. They ran their fingers through the person’s hair, leaning down to run their other hand down the person’s chest in what would be a comforting gesture if not for their menacing grin.

“You’re not alone.” The voice, not quite a whisper, seemed to echo through the theater. The hand in the hair tightened and pulled the person’s head back to expose their face and neck, eliciting a noise between a gasp and a sob. The figure nuzzled the person’s neck. “We are always here.” The other figures surged forward as the light went out.

For a moment, there was silence and darkness. Then, the lights came up to reveal the actors standing in a line. One by one, alternating from end to end, they removed their hoods and masks to reveal the friendly faces underneath. The audience rose to their feet, applauding and cheering as their friends and family members each took a bow. Finally, the actor in the middle, the narrator from the beginning, the Raven, and the figure on the bed, lifted his mask.

“It’s Molly!” Beau hissed, looking at Fjord, Nott, and Caleb who were just as surprised. The make-up covered his tattoos, his hair had been colored black, and his clothes were much plainer than anything he owned, effectively concealing his identity. He grinned and took his bow, winking at the gaping faces in the front row.

After the actors had changed out of their costumes and removed the majority of their make-up, cast and crew emerged to mingle with the audience. Yasha came out from behind the curtains where she’d been helping move props and furniture. She joined Beau and the others, greeting them with a small smile. Jester and Molly came out shortly after, both grinning broadly and still buzzing with the adrenaline of a show.

“Well!” Molly said, holding his arms out in a grand gesture, “What did you think?”

“That was very well done, Molly,” Fjord said. “I can’t believe I didn’t realize it was you the whole time.”

“Magic of the theater, it’s a wonderous thing.”

“It was pretty cool,” Beau admitted, “ _Way_ better than the haunted house last year.”

“I know right?” Jester bounced on the balls of her feet, “They _really_ messed up when they took theater off the event.”

“In their defense,” Molly said, “From what I’ve heard there may have been a small fire due to some over-enthusiastic thespians.”

“Sounds familiar,” Beau smirked, “Candles, good in theory, not great in actuality.”

Molly grinned back, “Only if you’re using them for the wax and you’re very careful where you set them down. Mister Caleb,” He turned abruptly, “What did you think.”

“Ja it was a good show, simple but good.”

“Nott, pleasure to see you here, what about you?”

“I think you’re all nuts! Who wrote that scene at the end?”

“I did.”

“You’re insane!”

“Thank you,” He bowed, “So! Who’s up for late-night in the dining hall? I hear they have tater tots tonight.”

“Race you!” Jester took off running, Beau following close behind

“Caleb, let me on your shoulders and let’s get them!”

“Nott, I would love to, but I am not nearly physically fit enough for that.”

“Oh, I guess that’s true.”

“If you want,” Yasha said, “You can ride my shoulders.”

“Yes!” Nott grinned as Yasha helped her up, “Let’s go!” They took off, leaving the men behind in their dust.


	26. Let the water run and make me clean

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A dramatic title for a quiet afternoon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's 1am and I'm supposed to be working on papers, so hey have a chapter!
> 
> Title is from the Rick Astley song Let It Rain

“Caleb!”

The sudden call from across the campus lawn would have been more jolting if he hadn’t immediately recognized Jester’s voice. Sure enough, he turned to see her waving excitedly at him from the branch of a tree. It looked like Beau and Molly were also in the tree while Yasha and Fjord sat underneath. To his surprise, Nott was also in one of the higher branches of the tree.

“Guten Nachmittag, what brings you all out today?”

“Unseasonably warm weather, hard to resist taking advantage,” Molly leaned over on his branch to smile down at Caleb. The straps on his sundress were falling off his shoulders and the way he was kicking his feet made the skirt flutter. “Won’t you join us for a spell?”

“We’ll probably be heading in soon though, looks like a storm’s coming in,” Fjord nodded at the clouds rolling in beyond one of the academic buildings. The wind also had picked up, blowing dead leaves across the grass.

Yasha turned her face to the wind, closing her eyes with an almost peaceful look on her face, “I don’t mind a little rain, I’ll wait till it comes in before leaving.”

“I’m certainly not in a rush,” Molly added.

Jester waved wildly again, making her branch sway, “Caleb! Do you want to come up in the tree!”

“It’s very high!” Nott was clinging to the trunk of the tree but had a huge grin on her face. She had to yell a bit louder to be heard.

“Nein, I think I’m happy on the ground.” He pulled a book out of his bag and settled down cross-legged to read, letting the conversations of the others drift into the background.

The clouds continued to drift in on the wind, stealing away the last of the sunshine and most of the warmth. Those in the tree began making their way down, holding out hands to help each other find balance. Molly at one point “accidentally” jostled the branch that Beau was grabbing, resulting in a brief battle to try and make each other lose balance before Nott screeched at them to “knock it off before she jumped onto one of their heads.” Still, no one was quite ready to go in, silently challenging Mother Nature.

The rain came in swiftly and with no build-up. A sheet of pouring water blew over the campus, drenching them in less than a minute. Yasha tipped her head back to let the drops fall down her face. Jester shrieked with delight, Nott in terror. Before Caleb could get to her, though, Molly had already draped his coat over her head to offer some protection. Caleb scooped her up onto his back so she wouldn’t have to walk in the rain and they all trudged towards the nearest building- the campus bookstore and café.

“Hello there!” Called a friendly voice, “What can I do for you today?” The man behind the bookstore register smiled widely, his curly hair and round face fitting well with his broad frame.

“Hello,” Fjord stepped forward a little, staying on the floor mat as he wrung his shirt out, “We were just looking to get in out of the rain.”

“Oh yeah, it sure came in quick huh? Well, take your time, get dry, and holler if you need anything. The name’s Pumat-Sol.”

“Much obliged. Say, you don’t know if the café’s open yet do you?”

“No not yet, but I hear they’ve found someone to take over. It’ll be nice to have the place up and running again, I would’ve done it myself but I don’t really have the knack for it.”

Jester bounced up and down, “Do you think they’ll have scones!?”

“I couldn’t say for sure, but I would imagine what with scones being somewhat of a staple among tea drinkers’ choice of pastries that there would be at least a small selection from which to choose from. Of course, that’s only a speculation on my part. Y’know, if you’d like you can go sit in the café area so you don’t all have to squeeze together on that mat. I was planning to mop the floors anyways so a little extra water won’t hurt too much.”

“You are a blessing!” Molly broke off from the pack to take a seat, Yasha close behind. The others wrung themselves out a little more before following, settling in as the rain continued to fall with no regard for the people who had other places they needed to get to.

A sneeze drew Caleb’s attention from making sure his book hadn’t gotten too wet, his instinctive “gesundheit joining the choruses of “bless you”s as everyone looked at Molly. Caleb took a moment to take in the flimsy dress, the dripping hair, and the goosebumps, before standing up and taking off his coat to drape over Molly’s shoulders. He sat back down immediately, feeling the flush creep up his neck and ears as the others stared at him. The pleasantly surprised smile on Molly’s face shone in his peripheral vision.

“Thank you, Mr. Caleb.”

“Ja, no problem.”

Mercifully, the deluge only lasted ten minutes before lightening to a gentle sprinkle. As the sun started poking through the clouds again, the group got ready to leave.

Beau stretched her arms over her head, leaning back a little bit, “I’m going to go for a run. Fjord, you want to come?”

“I would but I’ve got art stuff I need to work on.”

“Me too, can I come with you?”

“Sure, Jester.”

“Have fun with that. Caleb, we still good to study tomorrow?”

“Ja.”

“Cool, see you later.”

“Guten abend.”

As the three of them left, Molly returned Caleb’s coat and accepted his own from Nott.

“Caleb?” Yasha asked, “What was that you said to Beau? Gu- glu-“

“Guten. Abend.”

“Gluten almonds,” Molly interrupted.

“Oh! Gluten almond!”

Caleb narrowed his eyes at them, just barely holding back a smile, “Ja, ok. Guten nacht.”

“Present!” Nott piped up. She did her best to look innocent as Caleb silently accused her of betrayal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Firbolg spotted!


	27. Close Encounters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Molly oversteps a little and there's a Discussion

Caleb like to think he was usually a pretty perceptive guy, staying aware of where people were and the quickest route to the exit. So it was more than a little disconcerting when he found himself suddenly pinned to the shelf he was restocking, bracketed between someone’s arms. As his mind was racing between being concerned (terrified) and laughing at the fact that this was a very cliché scene from some high school movie about a kid who was bullied, he saw the familiar snake tattoo on the back of the hand.

“Guten abend, Herr Caleb.” The voice brushed up against his ear.

“Guten abend, Herr Mollymauk.” There was no room for him to turn around without making full contact with Molly so Caleb kept his eyes on the shelves. “Can I help you with something?”

“Fjord said that Beau said that Nott said you brought in the clothes you borrowed, so I came to return your coat. I figured if you were half as fond of yours as I am of mine then you’d prefer to have it back as soon as possible. Don’t worry, I didn’t try to wash it, I just hung it up to air dry.”

“Danke. I washed the shirt and trousers but not the coat. However, they are all downstairs with my bag. I can go get them for you once I finish shelving these books.”

“No rush.” Molly didn’t move.”

“Do you have something else you can do while you wait?”

“Am I making you uncomfortable, Caleb?”

“No,” He lied, “but you are getting in the way of my work.”

“Liar,” Molly teased, pulling his arms back and stepping away. “Not a fan of getting up close and personal?”

“I don’t like being snuck up on and trapped from behind.” Caleb put a book on the shelf with a little more force than was necessary, “Especially when I am working.”

There was silence. Caleb shelved three more books before turning to look at Molly. The other was leaning against the opposite shelf, arms crossed, not making eye contact. In fact, he was looking down, almost like he was embarrassed?

“You’re right,” Molly finally said, “I’m sorry. That was creepy and inappropriate. I’ll let you get back to work.” He turned and disappeared down the shelves.

Caleb took his time with the rest of the books, letting his mind settle down. He was glad Molly had apologized, and looked like he meant it, but that didn’t change the fact that he’d crossed a line. Luckily, Molly seemed to have learned his lesson and likely wouldn’t be doing it again, but Caleb would be keeping an extra eye out for bright purple hair just in case.

When he got back down to the desk, his coat was resting on the back of his chair and the bag with Molly’s clothes was gone. Pinned to the collar was a ripped note with a number on it. Crammed in the margin was the barely legible message: In case you need it -Mollymauk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wasn't sure for a while how to do this scene since I know it's had some mixed reception in the fandom and ultimately I decided to turn it into something I can use for my purposes; don't worry, we're still in the early burn ;)


	28. Late Night Hues

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the immediate aftermath, Molly seeks advice and solace

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is the title a pun? I dunno it was just all I could think of

Jester found Molly in the smaller studio late that night. It wasn’t uncommon to find art students holed up somewhere in the building working on one thing or another, trying not to (or, in some cases, trying to) get high off paint fumes. Molly wasn’t working though. He sat on a stool in front of a blank canvas, coat off, sleeves rolled up, absolutely still.

“Molly? Are you alright?”

“Hmm?” He turned, smiling a bit when he saw her, “Jester, hello dear. What brings you here at this time of night?”

“I wanted to work on some paintings but it’s too cold to open the windows in our room. Plus, I think Beau has a friend over _if you know what I mean_.”

“Good for her, she was looking a little stressed.” As he talked, Molly absent mindedly stirred one of the pots in front of him.

Jester pulled another stool over and sat down next to Molly. He had a rainbow of watercolors laid out in front of him and was currently swirling a brush in the orange. She leaned gently against his arm, resting her head on his shoulder, waiting for him to decide if he wanted to talk.

“I messed up today, and I don’t know what to do.”

“What happened?”

“I…overstepped, and I didn’t realize until I did it that this was one time when I really didn’t want to do that.”

“I’m sorry, Molly.”

“I’ve screwed up before, but I just made amends as needed, backed off, and moved on. I don’t…I don’t _want_ to just move on this time, but I don’t know how to fix this.”

“Mama says the best way to show you’re sorry is to show them that you care. Sooo like if there’s a book they mentioned they would like…” Jester kicked her legs innocently as Molly chuckled.

“I never was good at subtlety.” He fell silent again, sighing thoughtfully. “Jester…”

“Hm?”

“Would you…would you help me with something? I was going to ask Caleb but…”

“What is it?”

“I…” he whispered in her ear, not wanting to say it out loud even though they were alone.

“Of course, I can do that! I used to help people at home with that all the time! It’s not super easy but you’re starting with an advantage so you should pick it up in no time. And you’ll figure out what to do about Caleb, I’m sure. Now you better start painting something before your colors dry out.”

“Thanks, Jester.” Molly wrapped an arm around her shoulders and gave her a kiss on the head before turning himself to his canvas. She moved to a canvas across the room so they could make faces from around their canvasses and not be tempted to look over each other’s shoulders, or flick paint at each other.

After a few hours had gone by, they both decided it was time to stop and took a moment to stretch out the kinks and cramps.

“Show you mine if you show me yours,” Jester said.

“That’s not the first time I’ve heard that.” Molly winked, making Jester giggle. “Let me take the tape off first.” He peeled off the painter’s tape and carefully turned his around. The splashes of color with the blank geometric lines made his canvas look like a stained-glass window. “Thought I’d try something new. What do you think?”

“Oh Molly, it’s gorgeous!” Jester turned hers around, “What do you think of mine?”

Molly fell off his stool laughing as Jester revealed a highly detailed, skillfully painted, anatomically correct, very erect, purple penis.

**Author's Note:**

> Basic info on this AU:  
> Caleb- senior, English major, works in the library to earn extra money, lives in an apartment off campus with Nott
> 
> Beau- sophomore, criminal justice major, rooms with Jester
> 
> Jester- sophomore, art major theater minor, rooms with Beau
> 
> Mollymauk- year unclear, theater major???, rooms with Fjord
> 
> Fjord- Freshman, undeclared, rooms with Molly (will declare a history major)
> 
> Nott-studying to get into college, undetermined job but she pays rent on time so Caleb doesn’t mind, chem major
> 
> Yasha-people know less about her than they do Molly, and she doesn't seem to be on campus a lot...


End file.
